The Silver Rose
by Taige
Summary: When an artifact even more powerful than the Triforce is discovered, all hell breaks lose


THE SILVER ROSE PROLOGUE Many centuries ago in the so-called Golden Land... Fighting his way past his fellow thieves, Ganondorf Dragmire felt the powerful lure of the Triforce. The golden object seemed to fill his vision as his men were slain around him in the rush for the item. Across the land the band of thieves ran, each hoping to gain the ultimate prize and to stop their fellows from getting there first. In the end, the mightiest was proven to be Ganondorf as he stepped over the body of his last fallen mate, pulling his sword from the carcass as he did. The King of Thieves ran up the winding path encircling Fire Mountain, the home of the Triforce. When he reached the top of the small mountain, he slowed and eventually came to a halt before the shining object. Slowly, in the brilliant light of the all powerful Triforce, Ganondorf reached out. And then, with blood-stained hands, he gripped the Triforce. Suddenly, almost beyond hearing, a whispered voice said: "If thou hast a strong desire or dream, wish for it..." Ecstatic with his find, Ganondorf's laughter filled the Golden Land and spread to all lands. As he made his wish, a single drop of blood, mixed with the Essence of the Triforce, fell from his hands to the ground. There a small crystal formed. That crystal would grow into a very powerful object; one that could cause great disaster if it fell into the wrong hands...  
  
THE ADVENTURE BEGINS...  
  
Hyrule. A kingdom of magic and mystery. Where armies arise and fall in a fortnight, but peace ultimately reigns supreme. The Warlord Ganon and his armies are dead. The king has been returned to power. The Triforce is safely hidden once more from the greedy hands of mortals. Life has returned to normal.  
  
But we'll get back to that later. For now, we visit the country a good four day travel south of Hyrule's capital. The country of Calatia. A country as old as Hyrule but as different as can be.  
  
No one in the living world knows his true name. He is more of a myth than an actual person. He is the oldest being in the land, well over seven hundred years old, and he is tired of being known as an outcast. To many people he is known as Grundel; a hermit who inhabits the Great Desert because he is mistrusted by all people. Over the centuries, Grundel had learned many things. For instance he is quite possibly the most powerful magician who ever lived. Presently, Grundel is searching through the extensive library in the city of Tranora for a mention of a rumour that he had heard of several years ago. "Sir?" Neebus asked his master. Irritably, Grundel turns to his servant. "Yes? What is it?" "Sir, I was wondering what it is that you are looking for." "Oh." Grundel said flatly. "Well, if you must know, I am looking for an artifact of immense power." "But sir, I thought that the powerful objects were made hundreds of years ago. Why then are you looking through new scrolls?" "Because this artifact is very new." Saying that, Grundel returned to the scroll he was studying. Neebus busied himself with another scroll. A few minutes pass quietly. Suddenly, Grundel jumps out of his chair and shouted triumphantly. Neebus hurried to his master's side. "Did you find it?" the servant asked of his master. "Yes, yes! This is it! This is it!" the old man shrieked with glee, "Description... Place... Power... This has it all!" Grundel tore the scroll section from the rest of the parchment and turned to leave the building. A librarian ran up to the pair. "Excuse me," The librarian said, "but you cannot take that out of the building." Grundel turned to the elderly man and fixed him with an icy stare. "Go away." said Grundel. The librarian quickly backed away, trying desperately to get away from the frightening eyes. Grundel and Neebus quickly departed the building. The librarian turned shakily and went to the torn scroll. He picked it up, and in horror read the name. The title was: 'The Lorrduungahnim.' Meaning 'The Book of Agahnim.'  
  
"Oh, for the sake of Garin!" shouted the governor of the Tranora District of Calatia, Lord Gonhaussin, in frustration. "Does no one know who these men were or what they wanted with one of Agahnim's scrolls?!" Lord Gonhaussin stared furiously at the three men seated in front of him. The librarian who had found the scroll, the chief of the city guards, and the personal advisor to Gonhaussin each made definite negative remarks. The governor angrily paced the room. "Tell me again what this scroll was, Dunkirk." said Rishum, the advisor, to the librarian. "Well, your honors," said Dunkirk, "this particular scroll, titled: 'The Book of Agahnim', is the evil one's personal log book. Whenever that magician discovered something magical in the Dark World he would record it in the book. And I must say, that having now read this scroll, I can say that there are many astonishing discoveries made. For example, did you realize that-" "Can you tell us what was stolen?" interrupted Tracer, the captain of the guard. "Oh, sorry. Well, yes. I think. You see, the torn section was part of an items list that contained the description, power and location of the item. The item, I believe, was some sort of rose, I think, that has unbelievable powers of some sort; powers that rival those of the Triforce of Hyrulian Legend." Rishum snorted contemptuously, "The Triforce. What a quaint custom those Hyruleans believe in! Do we know how powerful this rose is?" "No." came the reply. "Well,' said Tracer gruffly, "We can only assume that this object has a lot of power. So, I suggest that we take immediate military action." "Perhaps," said Gonhaussin, "we should contact the Hyruleans to see if they know about this rose." "No!" shouted Tracer, "for all we know, Hyrule could have sent those two men to get the scroll." " I do not believe that." said Rishum, " Hyrule would not stoop so low as to steal something of the accursed magician, whom they hate as much as we do.' "That's right," Gonhaussin said, "Agahnim almost destroyed Hyrule some years ago before he was defeated. May he stay dead this time." There was a quiet murmur of agreement from the others. "Then what can we do?" asked Dunkirk. "The only thing I can think of is sending messengers to all towns with descriptions of the two men." the governor said, "Hopefully, we can catch them before they find this rose."  
  
Now, several days later, we visit the country of Hyrule, with its many castles and fortresses, wizards and mages, and the many ruins of the once great civilization of the Hylia. In the centre of it all is the magnificent castle/city/capital of Hyrule. Few cities in the known world are as rich and beautiful as Hyrule. Her king, Gerrik, is the best ruler a land could have: kind yet commanding, friendly yet fierce, cunning yet simple. In short, the perfect ruler. Gerrik is the father of the pride and joy of all the land. His three daughters are considered the fairest of all. Mira, the eldest, is honored for her beauty and political liaisons(those that united the Eastern and Western portions of Hyrule under one emblem), Julia is known for bearing the warlord Trine who turned out to be the black sheep of the family, and the youngest of them is by far the most well known, Zelda, whose ruling abilities and beauty are unsurpassed anywhere. Also in this magnificent land is the famous hero, Link, the young lad who single-handedly destroyed the forces of Ganon and saved the entire land from the monster.  
  
Presently, all of the above mentioned(and some more who are to trivial to mention) are eating diner in the castle. In the midst of the dining, a servant enters the room and hurriedly speaks with the king. Gerrik listens to what the servant has to say and nods. The servant leaves and in his place comes a man bearing the sword and cross of the Calatian Army. All diners notice him and stop talking to watch. The man walked up to Gerrik and said loudly: "I bring a message for King Gerrik." Gerrik nods and says to the man: "Speak." "My lord, the Governor of the Calatian state of Tranora, Lord Gonhaussin, has sent me with very disturbing news. Two as yet unidentified men were seen leaving the Tranoran Library with a section of a scroll entitled 'The Book of Agahnim' in which is held many discoveries of nature and magic the evil one had made. The two men took a section about a magical rose that may have incredible power and is held in the Golden Land. You are advised to be on the lookout." The silence that filled the room was intense. Link slowly looked around at the diners and noticed that when the book's name was declared, everyone of those around him stopped eating and looked slightly sick. "This is terrible news." Gerrik says after a while. Murmurs of agreement sound around the table. "Any suggestions on how we approach this matter?" the king said to those seated around him. Princess Zelda speaks up, saying: "I say that we take immediate action. Place posters of the two's description over the land, mobilize the army for immediate action if these men pose a threat, and scout out the Golden Land." Again murmurs. "Very good," Gerrik says, "We shall do that, my dear. Link, can we count on the help of the Praetorian Guard?" "Your highness, as captain of the Guard, I can assure you of our help." Link says loyally. "Also, I shall take the Master Sword and go to the Golden Land.' King Gerrik rose and declared to the diners: "We must prepare!"  
  
Grundel was silently pondering on a large boulder in a dense forest when Neebus came up to him. "Master?" the servant asked. "Yes?" Grundel said quietly. "I was wondering as to the reason of why you have brought us to this place?" Grundel turned to Neebus and stared at him for some time before finally saying: "Look over that outcropping of rocks."  
  
Neebus went to the rocks, peered over, and gasped. Shocked, he looked back at Grundel. "That glowing wall you see is the gateway to the fabled Golden Land. Our final destination of this journey." said the old man. "The Golden Land?" Neebus asked, "Is that where this super weapon is ?" "Yes." "Why do we not just go in?" "Because it is locked." "Then why did we come here?" Grundel sighed and said patiently: "Someone will open it." "How can you be so sure?" Once again the old sage sighed and stated tiredly, "I leave part of the Book of Agahnim at the library of Tranora so that the Calatian government gets worried and sends messengers, telling of a secret weapon of Agahnim, to all surrounding lands, including Hyrule. Hyrule, in turn, gets worried and sends someone to check the Gate and, to be extra careful, search the Golden Land for trespassers thereby opening the gate for us. Is that enough to understand?" Before Neebus could answer, the sound of hoof beats reach his ears. Grundel heard them also, and both men ducked behind a rock that gave them a good view of the road. Up the road, the figure of a handsome brown stallion, bearing the regal crests of Hyrule, carrying a young man sporting a large sword, came into view. "Excellent." Grundel whispered quietly . As Neebus watched, the young man dismounted, walked up to the shimmering gate, and inspected it. Then he unsheathed his sword. Seeing the sword, Grundel inhaled sharply. "That sword," he whispered, "that is the Master Sword. Only one man carries that blade: Link!" The young lad, Link, took his sword and slowly touched it to the golden wall. Slowly, the transparent yellow glow began to recede from the blade until a large hole appeared. When the wall had completely vanished, Link stepped through. "Quickly now. Run!" whispered Grundel. Silently and quickly, the two men, invisible to Link's eyes by an invisibility spell of Grundel's, ran through the gate behind the warrior. Once inside, the men stood staring at what was before them. Before them lay a beautiful land with lucious forests, shimmering plains, glistening waters, a shining gold sky, and in the middle of it all, lay a giant pyramid. "Beautiful." Neebus said aloud. Link quickly turned around and saw the two men. "Halt!" the young hero shouted, "Who are you?" "My lord," Grundel said meekly, "we are but simple men who have traveled afar with our ultimate prize near at hand!" saying that, Grundel released a giant fireball from his hands towards Link. The Master Sword came up in a flash and Link blocked the ball of fire, but was still thrown back by the force of the blow. "Quickly, Neebus!" Gundel shouted to his servant as he raced down the sloping hill towards the towering pyramid. As both men neared the pyramid, a bright beam of light hit a nearby rock. Grundel carried on towards the edifice but Neebus stopped and turned to see Link, a shining sword in his hands. "I said halt!" Link yelled and shot another beam from his sword at Grundel. "No one shall stop me now! Not even you!" Grundel shouts over his shoulder, still running. As the young warrior passes Neebus, he throws a long bola cord that ensnares the servant. "You stay here." said Link and he ran after Grundel with all his might to reach the pyramid before him. Grundel reached the pyramid first and, having memorized the notes of Agahnim, headed for the lair of his prize. Link followed the old man into a small hole in the wall of the pyramid and stops, shocked. The cave he was in was, in fact, not a cave. Link had been in the room before when last he was in the Golden Land fighting Ganon. This cave was a small chamber with a pond in the centre. "What the-?" wondered a bewildered Link as his eyes crossed the room seeing no sign of Grundel. His suspicions are cut short as an octopus-like creature hurls itself at him, but instead of attacking him, it wrapped its arms around him and sticks him to the wall. "Well, well," Grundel said, walking out from behind a statue, "the infamous warrior Link. I must say, this is an honor. I thank you for opening the gate to the Golden Land. I could not come here if not for you." "Who are you?" asked Link from the wall. Grundel looked at the young man curiously. "Why do you wish to know?"  
  
"So that I can tell your relatives about your death." came the reply. The old mage snickered softly, "A sense of humour is always a good trait, my boy. My name is Grundel. And for two reasons you will not be able to do as you say. One, my relatives are all long dead. And two, you will not leave this room alive." "You sound confident. That can be a weakness." "More humour. Good. But I have every right to be confident, for in a few minutes I will have more power than Ganon ever did!" "What is it your looking for?" Link asked. "What?" Grundel asked as he looked carefully around the pond. "I search for an object of infinite power. Where the Triforce granted only one wish per user, this grants all the wishes one could think of." "But what-?" Link starts to say but is cut off by a glare from Grundel. "Quiet, Boy!" Grundel stands by the pond and raises his hands so that they are over the centre of the pond, and mumbles an incantation. A high-pitched whistle fills the room and suddenly, from the palms of the old man, a green fireball shoots down into the pond, creating a blinding flash of light. When the light faded from the room, Link saw that a hole had formed in the pond, through which the water was quickly draining. Grundel waited until the pond had drained before stepping in and looking into the hole. "Wait here, boy, while I collect my prize. Consider yourself fortunate to be the first to be killed by my new power." With that Grundel jumped down the hole. Link frantically struggled to free himself from the octo-bond, but the creature would not loosen its grip. Finally, Link places his feet against the wall and pushes with all his might. The octo-bond released its grip on the wall and fell to the floor along with Link, releasing the hero quickly as it hit a sharp rock, but Link did not move for he was knocked unconscious. When Link awoke, he quickly retrieved his sword from the ground and jumped down the hole after Grundel. As Link hit the ground he was surrounded by blackness. Quickly, he lit a small lamp, now broken from the fall with the octo-bond. As he shone the fractured light around the room, it fell upon Grundel lying on the floor. The old man was entrapped in another octo-bond. "Well, well," said Link, "look who's here." "Shut up!" snapped Grundel. "It seems to me that you won't be getting your ultimate prize after all. Too bad." "Shut up!!" Link looked at the small chamber that he was in. It looked like a small well no more than ten feet wide and very dark. In the centre of the room stood a small circular shrine with a glittering object inside. The warrior approached the shrine and peered inside. "Stop! Get away from there!" came screams from behind him, but he paid no attention. Inside the shrine stood a small silver rose made entirely of crystal, glowing like a small star. "Amazing." said Link, awed, in the faint glow of the rose. "So this is what you were after. Why?" Through clenched teeth Grundel growled. "The rose, as I said before, has the powers of the Triforce. Some more powerful, some not. A very great trophy. Now release me and give me the rose, and I shall not kill you." "Ha. I think not." Link said dryly, taking the rose from the shrine and placing it carefully in a small pouch at his waist. "Now. I would offer you help out of here, but you seem to be bound to someone else. Sorry." As Link prepared to leave, he saw a small piece of parchment on the ground near Grundle. Taking it, Link bidds his goodbye, fires his hookshot weapon to the ceiling and leaves. - - - - - - - - -  
  
"Master?" Some hours had passed since the departure of Link from the chamber. All was silent. "Master?" came the call again. Neebus was getting worried. After Link had left the pyramid, the servant had seen no sign of Grundel. As Neebus peered into the vast darkness of the well, he called again. "Master? Can you here me?" Softly, a whisper came from below. "Yes." "Are you well?" Neebus inquired. "Yes." "I take it that you did not get what you were looking for?" "I did not. That ignorant fool stole it from beneath my nose! I shall enjoy watching him die." Some minutes passed. "Master?" Silence.  
  
It was around midday when Link rode into the forests at the base of Death Mountain. As Link traveled down a seldom used path through the forest, his mind was working. Not of thoughts about the two men he had left in the Golden Land, or of the mysterious crystal rose he carried in his belt pouch. He was remembering. Remembering similar days like this many years ago when he had traveled down this very path on his quest for the Triforce. He was still thinking of days long past when he heard a loud explosion. Shocked by the noise in the almost silent forest , and also curious as to what might make such a thing, Link drew his sword and dashed through the trees to the source of another explosion. What Link saw amazed him. In the middle of a small clearing near a small stream, a pack of twelve moblins were attacking a strange man wearing the cape and cap of a jester. At the moment it looked like both groups were about evenly matched. As Link watched, the moblins formed a circle around the man, well out of striking distance. Suddenly three of the moblins charged. When the man saw them, he quickly jumped high into the air(higher than Link had ever seen anyone jump before) and toss down a little ball at the moblins. The ball hit the ground and made a 'jingle' noise like a small bell, bounced, jingled again, and then exploded. One of the moblins was instantly killed and the other two were wounded. The man fell to the ground and, quicker than Link's eyes could see, took out a knife and killed one of the injured moblins. For all his speed, the man failed to move quickly enough to avoid a moblin run and slash him with a rapier. Link knew that if the man fell he would be instantly killed by the moblins. Link had stepped into the clearing and killed two moblins before he was noticed. The moblins, not known for being tactically bright, surprised Link by splitting into two groups. Four of the moblins formed a circle around Link while the others remained to continue the attack on the strange man. The moblins were unsure as to how much of a threat Link posed so they were very cautious. One of the moblins dashed at the young warrior and was immediately killed by the Master Sword. The moblins, fearful this time, edged in closer. Link waited for them. Two of the little creatures attacked this time and one of them jumped, rapier drawn, at Link's head, while the other dove for his feet. Link easily killed the one that jumped at him, but was cut rather deeply in the thigh by the other one. Before he could swing at that one, the last moblin launched itself at the young hero. Link raised his arm quickly to shield his face but his elbow hit the attacking moblin in the throat, crushing its windpipe. It lay on the floor writhing in agony while Link quickly killed the last moblin. When he looked over at the strange man, he saw that two of the moblins were dead, but the man was very tired and bleeding from a number of wounds. Link came to his aid and the two of the them quickly killed the last of the moblins. "Thank you for assisting in the battle. If you had not come along, I would surely have died. It saddens me but now I must kill you." the mysterious man said to Link. "Hey, don't mention it. It was noth- What did you say?" Link said to the man, confused. "I must kill you. It is a custom in my country to kill an intruder of a battle. En garde!" Before Link could say anything, the man lunged at him with his sword drawn. As the man slashed, Link ducked and rolled out of the way, drawing his sword as he did.  
  
"It won't be that easy to kill me." Link says to the man. Swords clash for the next twenty minutes. During that time, both men tire quickly, but the change in pace is mainly noticeable in the strange man who was already suffering from many dangerous wounds. "You.. are a... good ..fighter," Link says as he blocks a brutal blow from his opponent. "..but ...not .. good .. enough!" Saying that, Link slashed upward with his sword, knocking the man's sword from his grasp. "I win." The man kneels before Link and says, "Indeed. I pleadge my loyalty to you until I can save you from death." Link surprised at the turn of events, says only, "Oh. Well good."  
  
"Good job, m'boy!" Gerrik shouted as Link showed him the Silver Rose. "Thank you, sir." Link told the King. "It was nothing." "Of course, of course. What are two men going to do to The Hero of Hyrule. You are a real Garin." Gerrik tells the young lad. Most of the court members were by now crowding around the throne platform, each trying to catch a glimpse of the object which has caused the Royal family to get so edgy. Zelda, who was standing behind her father, spoke up. "Yes, Link, you certainly are the Hero of Hyrule as we all know. You did well to bring the Rose here, but I see that you have also brought someone back with you." Saying that, the Princess looked directly at Krazieight. "Your majesties,' Link says as he introduces his companion, "This is Krazieight. He has pledged his loyalty to me because I saved his life." Krazieight stepped forward from the surrounding crowd and said: "Greetings your majesties." A tense silence fills the room as everyone there felt the centuries of royal tradition being roughly pushed out the window. Link stepped forward and whispered into Krazieight's ear: "Um, you're supposed to bow or kneel." "I kneel for no man except for my Lord." "Very well, Krazieight," said Zelda, "You have no need to kneel before anyone but your Lord." "I thank you." the odd jester said. Gerrik stood up and raised his hands. "Enough! Let us have a feast in the honor of Link, who once again has saved us from evil forces!"  
  
The court of Hyrule celebrated for the entire night, and the next morning they were all so drunk that most of them had trouble standing. In the small hours of the morning, two dark figures sneaked their way into the castle walls. "Hurry up!" whispered Grundel. "I'm coming!" answered Neebus to his master. The two men hurriedly ran to the throne room. "Do you know where you're going?" Neebus quietly asked his master. "Yes. I can feel the Rose nearby." "There it is!" Grundel shouted. In a corner of the room stood a small table with various trinkets on it. In the centre of it lay the Silver Rose. As Grundel ran towards it, two guards stepped into his path. "Halt!" They said. Grundel barely gave them a second glance as he threw a giant fireball at them. As he rushed over their burned carcasses, he reached the table and quickly pushed the other things onto the stone floor. Almost insane with images of his infinite power, the old man grabbed the crystal flower.  
  
An hour later, all of the inhabitants of the castle were standing, scared out of their wits, outside of the castle walls, all staring in awe at what was happening before their eyes. The castle of Hyrule was collapsing in on itself, and in its place was a stone monster bigger than anything anyone had ever seen before. Standing on top of the monster, Grundel was drunk with power and laughing with glee, when he suddenly stopped and turned to Neebus who was holding on for his life. "Neebus, do you think I over did it a bit?"  
  
The city was in turmoil. The creature of Grundel was wreaking havoc on everything around it. Fires were blazing in every street, the city guard were steadily losing control of the citizens as they flee for their lives from the creature. Near the outskirts of the city, what remains of order was being used to hastily create a city militia, gather the spread forces of the Hyrulean Army, and prepare the Praetorian Guard for battle. In the centre of the gathering of troops, is a tent in which a meeting was being held. "Now then, listen up!" the general of the Hyrulean Army shouted. "General," said Zelda quietly, "we have been listening to you shout for the past ten minutes. Please stop shouting.' "Sorry, m'Lady." the general said quietly, with some difficulty. In the tent stood Princess Zelda, Link, Krazieight, King Gerrik, the general, and the captain of the city militia. They were all leaning over a map of the city laid out on the table. "From latest reports, the monster has decimated the Castle District and the surrounding area, and most of the guild streets are on fire. Well, that makes almost half of the city destroyed." Link said pointing to the different points on the map. "We must move quickly if we are to save the city." Gerrik said worriedly. "I suggest that the army split into two and attack the monster from both sides while the militia strikes from the front. During the confusion, the Guard attacks from behind. Hopefully the monster will be so confused that it will topple." Everyone looked at Krazieight for a moment, for this was the first time that the strange man had spoken since the monster arrived. "That is a very good idea, Krazieight." Zelda said. "I say we use it." "So do I." Link said. "Aye. That is a grand idea. We shall act at once!" Gerrik said. Within the hour, the four groups were in their position. Link stood at the head of the mighty Praetorian Guard, General Krakken led one half of the army while Krazieight led the other half, and lastly, the civilian militia stood ready with their captain to march into certain death. At the agreed upon time, the four groups charged. Meanwhile on top of the massive stone creature, Grundel sat and watched the city of Hyrule burn to the ground. "Look at it, Neebus," he said, "the dream that old Ganon saw for so long, is finally coming true, but at my hands. To think, when we met, so long ago, Ganon called me a fool to conquer without an army. He sure proved his point, didn't he?" As Gerundel chuckled to himself, Neebus looked gloomily out at the carnage. What he saw startled him. Behind the behemoth, a small group of men were steadily advancing. "Um , sir," the servant said to his master, "don't you fear the people fighting back?" "What does it matter?" the old man answered, "They cannot harm my creature. Look! They are sending peasants to attack me!" Neebus was not as sure as his master when he saw thousands of men ,as he looked around, charging the monster. The militia had already hit the monster and had succeeded in stopping the thing, for it was purposely trying to step on each person. While it was engaged, Krakken's forces hit on the monster's left side. The monster looked unsure as it tried to decide which force to 'squish' first.  
  
As it was deciding, Krazieights forces hit the right side of the thing, confusing it further. On top, Grundel could sense that the monster was starting to get frightened by all of the people attacking it. He could remember a similar instance when he was a child. He was happily using a rock to smash lightning gnats when he had accidentally stepped on their nest. Before he could blink, he was surrounded on every side by extremely ticked-off bugs. The old man flinched at the memory of the pain, but smiled when he remembered what he did when he had recovered from the stings. He had returned to the nest with a torch and a simple binding spell. He lit the nest aflame and covered it with the spell so the insects could not escape. He had enjoyed watching the small animals burn. He chuckled. On the ground, all of the forces of Hyrule were attacking the creature to no avail. Link was steadily chopping at a heel when he sighted Krazieight and started towards him. When he reached the strange jester, he took the Hookshot from his belt and together they shot into the sky. When they had reached the giant's shoulder, they stopped. "Do know what you are planning to do?" Krazieight asked the hero. "Get to the top, of course." Link said as he started to climb up to the head. "Then?" "Then what?" Krazieight gave up and followed Link. "Look at the fools!" Grundel shouted to Neebus. "They fight yet they get nowhere!" "Yes, master." Neebus said gloomily. "Hello, again." came a voice from behind them. Neebus turned to see Link standing, sword drawn, on top of the giant's head!  
  
"This time, I won't leave you behind!" Link shouted. "Go ahead and try to kill me!" Grundel shouted back, standing up and firing a fireball at the young lad. Once again Link deflected the blow, but there was not much room to step back to. "I will then!" Link charged at the old man, sword swinging. Grundel fired green lightening at the hero, throwing the lad back again, and then ran at him. The old man kicked the Master Sword out of the hero's hand, sending it flying out into the sky, then created a small staff, which he pressed against Link's throat. "Now you will die!" Grundel shouted in anger. From behind the mad magician Neebus suddenly screamed. Grundel turned to see a strange man in a jester's suit standing where Neebus was last sitting. "Who are you?" Grundel asked Krazieight. "I'm not the one you should be worried about." the jester said, pointing. Grundel quickly turned around to see the Link had drawn a small dagger and was angling into a position to hit the old mage. Before Grundel could do anything, Link stabbed him in the chest, and then swiped it across the old man's stomach, loosening a pouch flap that released the Silver Rose. All three of the men watched in horror as the small treasure fell and shattered into several pieces on the giant's head. Then the shards exploded, throwing both Link and Grundel into the air. Bits of rock shrapnel flew everywhere, most of which, he would say later in life, hit Krazieight. Just under his feet, the monster screamed and fell to it's knees, then to it's hands, still screaming as it started to crumble into huge boulders.  
  
Krazieight, on his knees and hanging on for his life, crawled to where Link fell off and looked for a sign of his companion. To his relief, Link was hanging, several feet down, by the same Hookshot weapon that had saved his life several times before from the creature's shoulder. When Krazieight had climbed down to help Link up, Link had already climbed up, so they both stood on the giant's shoulder. "Come on!" Link yelled to Krazieight over the din of the crumbling giant. Krazieight and Link jumped off of the shoulder and into the air. Just before it looked like they would fall to their doom, the Hookshot shot out again and snagged the side of a building, swinging them very roughly into the side of a building. As they fell to the ground, hundreds of troops and citizens crowded around them cheering. Link stood and looked right into the face of Princess Zelda. "Zelda!" he says. "You did it! You did it! You saved us all!" the princess shouted as she embraced the young hero. "You truly are the Hero of Hyrule!"  
  
EPILOGUE It took several days to stop the city from burning to the ground, but when the great city had cooled, the devastation showed itself much more clearly. Almost half of Hyrule City had been destroyed either by the monster or by fire. Most of those who remember would later say that the destruction was worse than that of the attack from the Warlord Trine. But, as all things do, the city rebuilt itself in time to once again hold the title of gloriest city in Hyrule. But enough about the city, what happened to the characters? Well, Krazieight was never seen after that night, but several citizens claimed to see a man in a jester's suit limping away from the city not long after the battle. King Gerrik and Princess Zelda and the rest of the surviving Royal Family continued to rule for many years to come, bringing Hyrule to its Golden Age. Lastly, the Hero of Hyrule, Link, remained captain of the Praetorian Guard and went on to have many more adventures before his time came; but this is not the end. No; this is mearly just a chapter in the great Legend of Zelda. 


End file.
